Individual and Contextual Factors for Bullying and Peer Victimization: Implications for Prevention

Abstract

The Division of Violence Prevention (DVP) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is committed to preventing youth violence. For the past decade, DVP has supported research on risk and protective factors associated with youth interpersonal violence and the development and evaluation of prevention programs. This commentary addresses the findings, relevant themes, and implications of the five empirical articles included within this special issue that come from several CDC-funded Academic Centers for Excellence (ACEs) on Youth Violence Prevention. This commentary also focuses on the social context of bullying and peer victimization with particular emphasis on the influence of contextual and school-level indicators.Finally, it summarizes how the findings presented are consistent with, and can advance, DVP's research and prevention priorities in youth violence.

A systematic review and content analysis of bullying and cyber-bullying measurement strategies

“…The field of bullying is in desperate need of uniform terminology and definitions to describe these behaviors (Swearer et al, 2010; Vivolo, Holt, & Massetti, 2011). In this review, authors used several terms to discuss bullying behaviors, including peer victimization and peer aggression.…”

The Role of Community, Family, Peer, and School Factors in Group Bullying: Implications for School‐Based Intervention

“…Although an ecological perspective suggests that intervention at each level is important, most research has focused on intervention at the individual and school levels; much less work has been completed at the community and family levels. Many researchers recognize this empirical oversight and call for more studies that investigate community and family‐level factors . In particular, in Hong and Espelage's comprehensive review of the bullying literature, the authors suggest that future research needs to be directed at investigating community and family factors that may contribute to improving the effectiveness of school‐based interventions.…”

The Social Context of Bullying and Peer Victimization: An Introduction to the Special Issue

“…The commentary by Vivolo, Holt, and Massetti (2011), a group of youth violence prevention specialists at the CDC, identifies common themes across the articles, implications for prevention, and areas for future research. Their commentary also discusses how the research presented fits within existing and emerging priorities for the CDC.…”